


Hope In Dark Times

by Ambenya



Category: AKB48, AKB48 & Related Fandoms, NMB48
Genre: F/F, Minor Violence, Post-Apocalypse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-11
Updated: 2019-09-11
Packaged: 2020-10-14 01:14:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20592218
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ambenya/pseuds/Ambenya
Summary: When a major event affects the entire world and crime runs rampant, Kashiwagi Yuki decides to open up a coffee shop/bar called "NewHope". There Watanabe Mayu, Yamamoto Sayaka, and Oshima Yuko form the band "Redefined Hope" and perform. Along with two workers, Takahashi Minami and Ogasawara Mayu, they wish to bring hope to a new generation.





	Hope In Dark Times

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted in 2014.

‘It had been over five years since the world seemed to go to hell. I remember the day clearly, cause no matter how much I wanted to forget I just couldn’t. I lost friends and family that day. Let tell you what I remember.’

It was a beautiful day and nothing seemed out of the ordinary it felt like that day was going to be perfect.

“Hey, Yukirin! You seem to be in a good mood today.” My friend Oshima Yuko said with a smile.

“Yeah, I feel good about today,” I said with a huge smile on my face.

“I understand it does feel like one of those days doesn’t it,” Yuko responded happily and smiled a content smile.

The day went by as usual until lunch which is when everything went downhill. Yuko and I were running some errands when suddenly the ground started shaking at first we thought it was an earthquake but then we heard screams and noticed a whole bunch of people running to get out of the building.

We quickly ran to the window to see what happened when what looked like a huge blast was coming for us. Yuko and I ran with the rest of the crowd when we figured it wouldn’t help we decided to hide somewhere safe.

“Look Yuki-chan there is a closet maybe that could shield us well enough!” Yuko shouted dragging me to the place she was talking about.

We went into the closet and huddle together under things when suddenly the blasts flew past us and we stayed there not moving one bit for about 30 minutes.

“Do you think it is okay to move?” I asked Yuko in a shaky voice.

“How about we both check together?” She responded trying to sound calm but I could tell she was as scared as me.

“Sounds good…” I said grabbing my friend’s hand as we got up together cautiously and when we did us both gasped at the sight before us.

The whole area seemed blown away and before us, laid the dead and injured bodies of our classmates and teachers. We looked around not knowing what to do. I felt numb looking around me I finally noticed that the roof above me was gone and somehow the thing we hid behind was still there.

“Oh my… god…” Yuko whispered at the sight.

We began moving to look around for help not knowing what else to do. We heard people cry and take their last breaths.

As we continued on our way we tripped over a few things here and there. I noticed a place where people were gathering together and pointed it out to Yuko.

“Yuko-chan let’s go over there,” I said to the shorter girl.

‘After that, we all started to work together to find shelter, water, and help the injured. Yuko and I had to wait to hear news of what happened to our families. My mom showed up a week after the tragedy and it turns out that my father and little brother had died during the event. We cried over their lost the whole night. It was the first time I had cried since it happened. We found out that what happened didn’t just devastate Japan it had done so to the rest of the world.

Shortly after that we all decided to try and improve the world, we created a memorial for the dead and tried our best to move on but sadly people slowly began losing hope and crime went up. Yuko announced her leaving for another place leaving me with just my mother to rely on. We soon found out that my mom was sick and would probably die much to my shock. She died two years after the blast from her illness. I was just 20 but I had lost all my family and my only known living friend.

I felt depressed but I noticed the world needed hope as much as I did. So I then decided to open up my coffee shop and bar. If anything it would give people a place to escape when they needed it. I was happy to be there for them when they needed it. Everything seemed pretty calm until I met her.’

I was just returning from the store with some groceries when I noticed a girl standing in front of my bar looking like she was waiting for someone.

“Hey if you’re trying to prostitute yourself I would prefer you didn’t do it in front of my business,” I called out to her harshly. It was common for people to do stuff like that but I didn’t want the bad business that sometimes went along with it.

“I wanted to talk to the owner about something and since that’s you I guess I might as well ask.” The girl said with a small smile on her face. I got a closer look at her after she said that, her hair was long and black. Her smile was sweet but her eyes seemed like they were guarded.

“Okay sorry for assuming earlier it’s just girls come here all the time trying to do that with customers. So I’m Kashiwagi Yuki the owner of ‘NewHope’. Why don’t you come in?” I said with an apologetic smile offering her to come in.

“Sure, I’m Watanabe Mayu by the way.” The girl said as she looked around and sat at the bar.

“So what is it that you need Watanabe-san?” I said as I sat at the bar with her to talk.

“I heard that you just opened this place and are looking for someone to provide some entertainment or music.” The girl smiled at me with a glimmer of mischief in her eyes.

“Well yes, but what does that have to do with you?” I replied not knowing where this was going.

“Well I’m a part of a band and I was thinking we could play here,” Watanabe said with a smile on her face.

“I’m not sure about that… What do you want in return?” I asked caution of her since I just met her even if she didn’t seem to be tricking me.

“Please, I promise we won’t ask for anything in return. All we want to do is bring happiness and hope to people and by the looks of this place’s name so do you. So, how about you let us play here as a hope for a new generation?” Watanabe said begging me looking me in the eye with a pleading look she looked pretty like that.

“Well okay then… Your band can play here but before you do I would like to meet your bandmates. How about you all come here at 6 pm and we can all talk.” I said smiling at the girl who was now going to perform here.

“Okay! Bye and thanks again.” The cute girl said with a smile and a wave before leaving.

I looked at my bag of groceries and picked them up before heading upstairs where I live by myself. I live in the above area of my shop because I liked to be near it since you can’t trust people anymore. I felt hungry so I made myself something to eat. Afterward, I went back downstairs to get ready to open the place up for the night when I heard a knock on the door.

I checked the time and realized that it was time for Watanabe to come here with her band and that it was probably her at the door. I quickly went to the door and when I answered it I saw her, “Hello Watanabe-san and her friends. Please come in.” I said with a bright smile moving aside to let them in.

“Wow, this is a nice place.” A voice I recognized from my past said.

“Yuko-chan? Is that you?” I asked looking at one of the girls who walked in. I noticed she was shorter than the other two girls.

“Hey Yukirin, how have you and your mom been?” The small girl said with a smile on her face.

“I have been pretty good but my mom passed away a few months back…” I said with a sad smile on my face noticing the shorter girl’s smile disappear and her eyes grow larger.

“Oh… I’m sorry… She was such a kind woman and she had a wonderful daughter I’m proud to call my friend.” Yuko said in a caring voice she used when I was upset when we were younger.

“Thanks anyway before we can catch up let’s all sit down and talk about how this performing thing is going to work,” I said leading them to the backroom where I usually conduct business.

They all sat down at the table I had in the room and looked at me. “Well, I’m ready to start at any point in time,” I said with a warm smile to the three girls.

“Well you know Mayu-chan and me, and the shorthaired girl is Yamamoto Sayaka. Our band is called Redefined Hope. I play the bass, Mayuyu is our vocals and Sayaka-chan plays the guitar.” Yuko said with a grin on her face.

“It’s nice to meet you all. When do you all want to start playing here?” I asked with a serious face.

“Anytime would be good we could start today if you wanted,” Watanabe said in response with a smirk.

“Okay, then and how much do you want to be paid?” I asked looking at the girls.

“How about you just give us food when we need it?” Yamamoto said with a smile that made her seem cool.

I looked at the girls to see if they were being genuine in what they were saying. They seemed to be 100% honest in what they wanted.

“Okay, it’s a deal,” I said with a smile relaxing noticing the other girls relaxed too.

We began talking about other stuff as the day went on they got their equipment set up on the stage I had. It was about time for the shop to open and we were all prepared.

We opened up and it was about time I went up on stage to talk to the audience. “Hey everyone, are you all doing well today?” I asked the crowd who all responded with cheers.

“I’m glad you are well today we have a band that will start playing here regularly so if you like them then tell all your friends about them. I guess I’ll pass this off to them. Ladies and gentlemen, here they are 'Redefined Hope'!” I said finishing off the introduction for the girls.

They jumped right into a song as soon as I got off stage. I knew Yuko was good at playing the bass but I never knew expected the other two to be just as good. As I watched the girl band before me I couldn’t help but notice how Mayu’s singing had my full attention. She got into the music and seemed to be completely into her performance. She was cute when we were talking earlier but the moment she hit the stage she looked so… cool. I stared at the beauty that was before me as it made my heart beat fast. This girl didn’t seem like the girl who came here earlier begging me to let her band perform here.

As if she knew I was staring at her she looked right at me and winked with a flirtation smirk on her face. I felt my cheeks flush a bright red and noticed out of the corner my eye that Yuko was grinning at us.

After a few more songs they finished and came to me to hang out for a while since I also work as a bartender here.

“So I saw you checking out Mayuyu during the performance. She’s pretty cute you know. If you want I can help you two get together.” Yuko said grinning and winking at me causing my cheeks to redden.

“Wh-what are y-you t-ta-talking about?!” I shouted at what Yuko said. The shorter girl just laughed getting the reaction she wanted.

“Hahaha! You haven’t changed at all Yukirin! You’re still the reaction queen you were back then.” Yuko laughed at my face that was still a little pink.

“Aww, Yuko-chan you shouldn’t tease her too much she might explode,” Sayaka told the squirrel-like girl with a grin who began laughing at my red face.

“Hey, you guys shouldn’t have all the fun. I mean it was me she was checking out so shouldn’t I be the one teasing her.” Mayu said smirking at me with an added wink.

“Well, then we’ll leave you two alone to talk, come on Sayanee,” Yuko said with a smirk taking the short-haired girl with her to talk to some strangers.

After the two left Mayu turned to me with a smirk on her face. “So was the performance to your liking Princess Kashiwagi?” The girl asked me causing my face to turn red fast.

“F-for one, don’t call me Princess Kashiwagi and two I think you and the other’s performance was really good you three are a great band. I can’t wait to see the next performance Watanabe-san.” I said my face bright red even while saying that.

“I wasn’t asking about the other two girl’s performance I was just asking about my performance. I want to know what you thought of me and please call me Mayu or Mayuyu.” She said with what sounded like a flirty tone to me.

“Okay, then you can call me Yuki or Yukirin, Mayu-chan. Anyway you were wonderful you seemed to be into the performance you must love singing.” I said with a smile using the same tone she had causing her cheeks to turn pink a little.

“Yeah well, music was the only thing that kept me going after the disaster happened. It kinda became my life and so I felt like I should share this passion for music with the rest of the world.” Mayu said with a sad smile.

“I understand I wanted people to have a place over their head where they can feel safe just like my mother would always provide. The world may have gone to hell but that doesn’t mean we can’t try to make it a little better.” I said in response to the cute girl who smiled sweetly back at me.

‘That night we talked about many things and became quick friends. I enjoyed the company of a young singer who enjoyed embarrassing me. We would talk about our past over the year got to know each other and spend a lot of time together and sometimes I would perform for with band playing the drums.

After a year it seemed business was increasing and my place was becoming increasingly popular so I decided to look for some help for the shop luckily I didn’t have to hard of a time finding someone to work with since I had the help of Mayu, Yuko, and Sayanee. However, at the same time, I was looking for people to hire I noticed that my feelings for Mayu were changing.’

“Yukirin! Yuko keeps stealing my notebook!” Mayu whined running to me like a sad child.

I turned to the girl and smiled at her noticing that she was pouting. I couldn’t help but find her cute as she did that. “Yuko, give Mayuyu back her notebook!” I said to the small girl who was grinning as she looked through the pages.

“Aww, but I was just curious to know what she was writing about,” Yuko said giving me the book with a silly grin that seemed wider than before.

“Well, why didn’t you just ask her about it?” I question as I passed the book to Mayu who seemed happy about getting it back.

“I did but she refused to tell me…” The squirrel-like girl said with a pout.

“Geez, you sure are like a child… Maybe she just doesn’t want to tell you now because she feels like you will bug her about it.” I said scolding her like a mother would a child.

“Fine then, I’m going to see what Sayanee is doing then,” Yuko said before running off to find the short-haired girl.

“Sorry about her Mayuyu but you know how Yuko can be,” I said with an apologetic smile.

“Yeah, I know… So how is the search for workers going?” Mayu asked tilting her head cutely. Just that one move made my heart race for a reason I didn’t know at that time.

“It's been hard actually, if you know someone looking for a job tell them about here,” I said putting my head down on the table.

“Of course I would tell them about here,” Mayu responded with a smile and began running her fingers through my hair. We just sat there in silence enjoying each other’s company.

After some time we heard the door open and pulled away from each other to see who walked in. It looked like a short girl with long hair in a ponytail with a bow. She looked around before she spotted Mayu and me and came running to us.

“Hey, you’re the owner here right?” The girl asked as she approached me with a serious look.

“Yes I am and who might you be?” I asked the small girl who just kept staring at me intently I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Mayu stepped closer to me.

“I’m Takahashi Minami and I heard that you were looking for workers and I was wondering if I could get a job here.” The small girl said with a smile on her face causing Mayu and I to relax.

“Um… Sure first I need to know how old you are, how much you want to be paid, and what kind of work you can do.” I said doing an impromptu interview.

“I’m 21 years old and you decide where the pay starts and I can do anything you need so long as you don’t ask me to sell myself,” Takahashi responded like she was prepared.

“Okay, I guess I’ll start you off on minimum wage. When can you start working here?” I asked smiling at the shorter girl who looked happy.

“I can start today if you need me to.” Takahashi smiled brightly at Mayu and me.

“Okay then let’s go introduce you to the other girls who work here,” Mayu said leading her over to Yuko and Sayanee as I followed behind.

“Hey, Yuko and Sayanee this is our new worker. Please be kind to her and I mean you, Yuko.” I said looking at the squirrel-like girl who seemed to be staring at Minami.

Sayaka quickly introduced herself to the new girl but Yuko just kept staring at the girl and the room became really quiet.

After a while of staring at one another Yuko finally spoke up. “You’re really short…” When she said those words all of us just looked at her in disbelief.

“You’re pretty short too you know.” The short girl responded with a glare surprising us.

We could feel the tension in the room rise between the two girls and decided to change subjects before a fight broke out. “So Takahashi-san, why don’t I show you around the place while we let these girls start practicing for tonight?” I asked leading her away while glaring at Yuko.

After Minami and I were away from the others I turned to her with an apologetic look. “I’m sorry if Yuko was being rude but she’s a good person once you get to know her,” I told Minami who smiled in response.

“Anyway this is the bar area and over there is the dining area. The kitchen is right behind the bar also upstairs is where I live so there is a living room up there if you need to rest. The stage is where our band performs and sometimes I play the drums for them. Well, that’s pretty much it. I hope we can work well together.” I said after giving her a tour around the area.

“This place is nice and has a pleasant feel to it. I always wondered what it was like.” Takahashi said looking around the area.

“I try to make this place feel comforting like how my mom made me feel. How did you know about this place?” I asked sitting down to talk as the short girl followed.

“Well, honestly I heard about the band here a few weeks ago and heard some of their music which made me a fan and tried to find where they were playing and learned of this place. I wanted to meet them so much and then I heard you were hiring so I figured why not get a job here.” Takahashi said her cheeks had a tint of pink on them.

“Oh, you’re a fan of theirs? Who is your favorite?” I asked finding this conversation interesting.

“I liked Oshima the most until I met her. I mean who tells a person they are short as soon as they meet?” Minami responded in an irritated tone.

“I understand what you mean. Yuko can be so rude sometimes but you’ll learn to ignore it or get back at her.” I responded with a smirk on my face which made Minami give me a questioning look.

“Hey Takahashi-san, do you want to play a prank on her with me?” I asked the girl with an evil glint in my eye.

“Sure why not and please call me Takamina.” She said with a grin on her face.

“Okay, you can call me Yukirin. Now here is what we are going to do. They always eat before performing so we are going put in a little hot sauce in Yuko food.” I said smirking with the girl as we looked toward the girls who were setting up the equipment.

“Sounds like a plan to me but I’m curious as to why you want to do this. Since I’m sure her being rude to me isn’t the reason.” Takamina asked with a curious look on her face.

“Well earlier she was picking on Mayuyu and then she said something rude to you so I figured I might as well give her some payback. Don’t worry she’s used to this since she and I have known each other since high school.” I said smiling before getting up to get the girl’s food.

“What was Oshima like in school?” Takahashi asked following me to the kitchen where the girls’ food was.

“She was a brat much like now but in actuality, she seems to have mellowed out a lot since then,” I responded remembering the days we used to goof around before all this happened.

“Well, that’s good. So which one is hers? ” Minami smiled sweetly looking at the three boxes with food.

“That one there is now let me just get the hot sauce,” I said before digging it out of its spot in a cabinet.

We quickly put the hot sauce in just before the girls walked in looking ready to eat the food. They each took a bite out of their food. Sayanee and Mayu happily ate their food when they noticed Yuko stopped with her eyes watering.

“What’s wrong Yuko?” Mayu asked concerned while Takamina and I started giggling like crazy.

“It’s spicy! Like really spicy!” Yuko shouted running to get something to drink causing us to just bust out laughing.

“Really? Let me try some.” Sayanee said taking a small bite of Yuko’s food before running off to get something to drink too.

Takamina and I couldn’t hold in our laughs anymore and just busted out in full-blown laughter. Yuko finally figured out what we did and glared at us.

“You two! You two did something to my food didn’t you?” Yuko questioned in a serious tone that worried me a little. I knew she was planning her revenge already.

“Yeah, we decided to prank for picking on Mayuyu and calling Takamina short,” I said with a smile that the girl is know all too well. They call it my Black smile.

“You have to admit Yuko you kind of deserved it,” Sayanee said after calming down and going over to Mayu.

“Well, I’ll get you two back for this,” Yuko said with a determined look in her eyes before going over and getting a snack.

After Mayu, Yuko, and Sayaka finished eating they got up to practice for a little while before we opened our doors I decided to have Takamina be a waitress for her first day here.

The night went smoothly and once again during the performance, I found myself staring at Mayuyu like usual. I realized at that moment that my feels for Mayu weren’t just of friendship anymore. I had fallen in love with the younger girl who sang in my shop. I looked at Takamina who was on a break and was watching some of the performance with me she was staring at Yuko in awe much like I did with Mayu.

After the performance, Mayu and Yuko came up to Takamina and I while it seemed Sayanee went to talk with a girl.

“Once again the performance was amazing!” I said with a smile mainly directed to Mayu.

“Thanks, Yukirin, I’m glad you enjoyed it,” Mayu said with her cheeks tinted pink as she gave me a hug causing me to blush.

“Why don’t you two go get a room? I still can’t figure out why you two aren’t dating yet.” Yuko said with an exasperated face.

“Wait, I thought you two were already dating,” Takamina said with a confused look on her face.

“WHAT?! What g-gave you th-that idea?” I asked with my face feeling like it was burning and my reaction queen mode showing. I noticed Mayu’s face was probably as red as mine if not redder and I made a mental note of how cute it was.

“Well, it was just the way you two acted I just figured you were together,” Takamina responded with a nervous smile on her face as Yuko started laughing.

“Geez! Even the new girl thinks you two should be together. I don’t know how much more obvious you two can be!” Yuko said as she continued to laugh causing me to blush more.

Before I could say anything Sayanee showed up with a girl around Yuko’s height maybe a little shorter and with short hair.

“Hey Yukirin, this is my friend Maachun. She’s looking for a job and I was wondering if you could hire her.” Sayaka asked me with a pleading smile.

“Hi, I’m Ogasawara Mayu but you can call me Maachun if you want. Sayanee told me you were looking for someone to work here.” Sayaka’s friend said with a goofy smile on her face.

“Well, I guess having another person working here wouldn’t be that bad. Okay, you’re hired!” I said before I introduced myself and Takamina.

‘After that night our little group was complete and even though I had other people working there as well after and before hours it was usually just us 6.

Yuko and Takamina usually pick on each other but at the same time hang out a lot and I know that they actually have feelings for one another it’s just that Takamina is both in denial and too shy to say anything. Yuko, however, is a total tsundere when it comes to love and I know this only because she told me when we were younger and I saw a few examples.

Sayanee and Maachun are in between being a couple and being friends. They both love each other but they don’t want to destroy their friendship that they have. But we all just try to encourage them that they should date.

And then there is Mayuyu and I ever since that day I have come to fall completely head over heels for the younger girl. The more I’m with her the more I fall for her. No matter what she is always on my mind, her smile, her laugh, even her otaku tendencies are all I can think of. Then when she performs I can hardly believe amazing and beautiful she becomes.’

“Hey Yukirin, you okay? You seem a little spacey today.” The girl I fell for asked me with a cute little pout she would have when I didn’t pay attention to her.

“Sorry I was just thinking of everything that has happened the past five years since the anniversary of the great disaster will be in a few days,” I said with a small smile to the cute girl.

“Well if you say so… Anyway, I was asking if you wanted to go shopping with me this weekend.” Mayuyu asked her cheeks turning a little pink.

“Sure that sounds like a lot of fun. What time do you want to go?” I asked trying to keep the butterflies in my stomach calm.

She sat there and thought about it before responding in a cheerful tone, “How about around 12? That way we can spend a lot of time together!”

“Okay then! It’s a date!” I said without realizing the second meaning behind my words until after I said it and noticed Mayu seemed to be turning red.

“W-w-wait, I didn’t m-mean it like that! I meant it’s like a play date with a friend.” I said while frantically moving my arms around.

“Hey you two, what’s going on?” Maachun asked walking up to us with Sayanee by her side saving me from any more embarrassment. I felt so grateful for having them around at that moment.

“Oh Yukirin and I here are going shopping together this weekend,” Mayuyu responded seeming to be back to normal compared to me who just stood there like an idiot.

“Shopping? I want to come!” Yuko said suddenly popping up out of nowhere from behind Sayanee and Maachun.

“I’m sorry Yuko but I just want to spend time with Yukirin, if you don’t mind…” Mayu said with a charming smile that she would use when she wants something.

Yuko seemed to be thinking about it before responding with a grin on her face. “Okay, I see it’s like that huh? Well, then you two have fun but not too much and tell me about your trip when you get back.” With that phrase, Yuko walked off with a wave and a wink.

Mayuyu and I just stood there for a second before we realized what Yuko meant leaving us both to blush. “Hey, that’s not what I meant!” Mayuyu shouted running after the squirrel girl who quickly began running.

The two disappeared off somewhere else with Mayu probably trying to kill the little squirrel. I turned to Maachun and Sayanee with a laugh. “So, is there something you two wanted to talk to me about?” I asked smiling at the two friends.

“There is but can you keep it a secret from the others for now?” Sayaka said with what looked like a hint of blush on her cheeks.

“Um… sure if that’s what you want then I promise to keep it a secret,” I said with a smile to show I was being honest.

“Okay… Yukirin, how do you feel about same-sex couples?” Maachun asked with a hint of worry in her voice about what I might say.

“I don’t have anything against them. I mean it’s not like you can choose who you fall in love with. Why do you ask?” I said with a questioning look. I mean why ask me what I thought of that stuff when the world doesn’t discriminate between that stuff anymore since most of us just feel lucky enough to be alive.

“Well, you see… Sayanee and I have started dating each other. We were worried you would reject us and stop being our friend.” Maachun responded with a sad smile on her face.

“EHHHHHHH?! You two were worried about that? You two had nothing to worry about it at all because we all saw it coming. We just waited to see when it will.” I said try to comfort the new couple who seemed happy with what I said.

“Yeah, thanks, Yukirin you are an awesome friend! Now time to go tell everyone else!” Maachun shouted before dragging Sayanee off to find the others.

‘Those two are such a cute couple together. I wish Mayuyu and I can be together like them…’ I thought to myself with a little sigh as I sat down.

“Thinking about Mayu-chan again?” Takamina asked walking up to me and sitting next to me with a sense of comfort. Her hair had been cut short since her hair caught on fire when she was cooking one time but her hairstyle made her look cool.

“Yeah… I want to tell her how I feel but it’s hard when I think I might lose her I worry.” I said my voice sounding very sad.

“I understand that but I think you should confess to her. I heard from Yuuchan that you and Mayuyu are going shopping together maybe you should tell her then.” Takamina said advising like she always did when someone seemed down or in need of help.

“Thanks, I’ll think about it. So how are things with Yuko? Did you figure out how you feel about her?” I asked her since she gives everyone advice but sometimes she needs someone to talk to about things.

“Yeah… I think I love her…” When Minami responded her face was red and she seemed to be smiling.

“Ahhh, so you did figure it out… Now time to think of confessing to the little squirrel.” I said with a slight smirk as she looked at me in disbelief.

“What? Are you crazy? There is no way anyone would go out with me especially Yuko! I’m pretty sure she doesn’t like me like that at most she sees me as a close friend.” Takamina ended up saying sadly with a small frown on her face.

“Hey, it’s close to the time for us open we should go get ready,” Minami said before I could respond to her earlier statement walking off.

‘Oh poor Takamina, if only you knew that Yuko felt the same way for you but is just a total tsundere.’ I thought to myself before going off to get ready too.

The night ended well with nothing bad happening except for a few drunks getting out of hand but they were kicked out soon after that. Overall the night went well and I decided to go to sleep as soon as we closed up.

Before I knew it, it was the weekend and Mayuyu and I are supposed to go on our shopping trip. It’s at noon when we plan to meet up but I was so nervous I woke up at 6:00 in the morning to get ready for the day.

I first made me some breakfast and took an hour-long bath to try to calm myself but I was just too excited for the day. I looked at the time to see that it was 8 o’clock and decided to figure out what to wear and how to wear my hair.

“Okay Yuki, you don’t want to seem desperate for attention. You want something cute but simple, something that makes her notice you but isn’t too dressy…” I said to myself as I looked through my closet for something while thinking of how to put up my hair and do my makeup.

“Oh! I got it! I’ll just wear this cute white dress I got with Takamina and put my hair in some loose curls and some light makeup would be good.” I said getting out the dress and finding a cute pair of boots to wear.

After getting dressed I looked at the clock and noticed I had wasted an hour making the time now 9. I decided to start on my hair which didn’t take too long in fact, it only 30 minutes for me to finish. I then put on just a little foundation and blush.

By the end of it all, I was done getting ready around 10 o'clock leaving me with just 2 hours left before Mayuyu was supposed to be here. I spent the rest on the time watching what was on TV which of course consisted of mostly news about the recent violence and any illegal acts which to me was nothing new as crime in our world got worse since the disaster 5 years ago but it was better than about a year ago.

After hearing about a recent attack on some people I heard a knock on my door. I looked at the clock and noticed it was a few minutes before 12. I went downstairs to answer the door and to my happiness, it was Mayuyu standing there in a cute but still somehow cool outfit.

“Hey Yukirin, are you ready to go?” Mayu asked me with a cute smile on her face. She was wearing a dark red skirt with black leggings; she had on a black hoodie and a cute gold necklace with a red heart on it. Her hair was down making her look more mature than usual.

“Yeah, let’s go Mayuyu. By the way, you look very cute and mature today.” I said with a sweet smile on my face. Mayuyu’s face turned pink at the compliment I gave her.

“Oh thank you! You look very lovely today as well.” Mayu responded with a sweet smile, her compliment made me blush as soon as I heard her say that.

“Thank you Mayu-chan. So to which store do you want to go to first?” I asked as I stepped out and locked the door.

“Well there is this one anime store I wanted to go to but I also figured it would be nice to go clothes shopping too” Mayuyu spoke with a sweet smile on her face.

We strolled around the anime store for a while before Mayu found something she wanted. Afterward, we went to the clothing store nearby that we all frequented when we had the money.

“Hey, this would look cute on you! Why don’t you go try it on?” I remarked with a happy smile on my face.

She saw the dress I was holding and blushed a little before beaming happily at me. “Sure but only if you try this outfit on!” Mayuyu responded gladly as she saw my face get redder at the outfit she chose.

The outfit she was holding was a deep red see-through shirt with a black tank-top to go underneath and black skinny jeans to wear. I blushed before agreeing to try on the outfit.

First Mayu tried on the outfit I picked for her after a while she stepped out blushing like crazy. The dress was a simple dark red and would look great for performances with a black leather jacket and boots. I was speechless standing there looking at her. Mayuyu looked so beautiful it the dress.

“W-well, say something already,” Mayu-chan said her cheeks reddening as she spoke and looked down.

“You look amazing in it. Absolutely perfect…” I spoke in a soft tone as I stepped closer to her not even thinking.

Mayu looked up at me with her cheeks still red and her eyes wide and before I could do anything she ran off to change back into her clothes leaving me standing there not knowing what to do.

She came back all calm and composed with a bright smile on her face. “Okay, I’ll get this dress I anything then just to see you speechless again. Now it’s time for you to go try on your outfit.” Mayuyu said with a smirk on her face as she teased me.

“Fine whatever you say Mayuyu,” I said before going into the dressing room and changing into the outfit.

After I was done I went to show Mayu how the outfit she picked looked on me. As soon as the cyborg-like girl saw me she grinned and had on a look of such perversion it would put Yuko to shame.

“What do you think you’re looking at?” I asked my face red with embarrassment and irritation at the younger girl.

“I’m admiring how lovely your oshiri looks in those pants. So perfect!” Mayu said still grinning like a maniac at me.

“You can be such a perv Mayuyu… But the outfit does look good so I guess I’ll get it.” I said before going back to change before I smacked Mayuyu for her perviness.

After buying a few more clothes the two of us decided to go get some ice cream and sit at the park. While we were sitting there talking these two guys showed up with smirks. Both seemed pretty lean and tall. The first guy had short red hair and glasses while the second guy was bigger but not much and had short black hair.

“Hey, what are you two lovely ladies doing here all alone?” The first guy asked us with a grin while eyeing Mayu closely.

“Umm… We were just resting for a little while.” I said with a smile scooting closer to Mayu not trusting these guys one bit.

“Well, why don’t we join you girls?” The second guy asked looking at me creepily like I was some kind of food.

“Actually, we were just about to leave so see you two later,” Mayuyu said in the cyborg-like way that she did when she didn’t want to be messed with. She got up and grabbed my hand to leave these guys.

“Ah, ah, ah, you girls are going to come and spend time with us.” The bigger of the two said as the two got in our way.

“Uh, no we are leaving so goodbye to you two guys,” Mayu said trying to push past the guys.

“No, you’re staying here with us.” The smaller guy said grabbing Mayu’s wrist harshly and pulling her away from me.

“So what do you think you are going to do now, little princess?” The bigger guy grinned as he leaned in closer to me.

I looked over to see Mayu glare harshly at the guy who was getting closer to me as she struggled out of the small guy’s grip.

“Leave her alone!” I said firmly feeling anger rise in me as I saw Mayu was being restrained.

“Oh, you don’t want us to mess with this girl here do you? Well, you can’t tell us what to do little girl and my friend has taken a liking to your friend.” The big guy said as he kept me from Mayuyu as his friend grinned before leaning in to kiss Mayu.

“No way I’m letting you jerks touch Mayu!” I said as I snapped punching the guy who got in my way in the face.

The smaller guy was just centimeters away from Mayu’s lips his hands pinning Mayu’s wrist to her side. I ran over to him punching in the cheek and getting in between the guy and Mayu.

“You two pieces of trash have no right to lay a finger on my lovely Mayuyu! Now if you two don’t leave us alone I will beat you to a pulp. Never let me see you two ever again!” I said kicking the two guys who just backed away before grabbing Mayu’s hand and walking away.

I was furious that those jerks would even think of touching my Mayu ever. I am the only one who could hold her hand, flirt with her, and kiss her. I was so focused on getting away from those guys that I forgot about getting ice cream.

As I was mumbling about earlier I suddenly felt Mayu stop and tug on my hand to get me to stop. I turned to look at the younger girl who just had her head down. I suddenly felt bad for dragging her with me without checking if she was okay.

“What’s wrong Mayu? Did that guy hurt you in any way?” I asked worried about how she was.

“No, I’m fine. It’s just… did you mean by what you told them earlier?” She asked looking up at me her cheeks a bright pink.

I looked at her confused about what she was asking me. I replayed the moment over in my mind.

“You two pieces of trash have no right to lay a finger on my lovely Mayuyu!”

‘Oh crap! I called her mine without even thinking about it. Uh –oh, what do I do?’ I thought before concluding that I shouldn’t hide my feeling from her any longer.

I took a deep breath before coming clean. “Yes Mayu, I meant everything I said. I just couldn’t stand them touching the love of my life. I love you, Mayu, and not just as a friend but as something more. I understand if you don’t want to be my girlfriend though.” I spoke the truth feeling a lot better just by confessing but now I’m worried how she will take it.

Mayu looked at me with surprise before she started giggling her cheeks pink. “Yukirin, you’re so silly! Of course, I will be your girlfriend.” She said before throwing herself into my arms.

I just stood there surprised at what just happened before shouting, “EHHHHHH?! Wait you’re saying that you like me too? B-but I-I d-don’t…” I was cut off by something soft touching my lips to shut me up.

It took me a second to realize that the thing that cut me off was Mayu’s lips but as soon as I did realize I quickly returned the kiss smiling because I knew my love was requited now.

After a few minutes, we pulled away both of us red in the face smiling like idiots. “Geez, Yukirin you need to learn when to keep your mouth shut. And yes I love you too.” Mayu said kissing my cheek before intertwining our hands and heading home.

“So I guess we will tell the others about our relationship when we get to the cafe?” I asked with a shy smile on my face.

“Yeah, we probably should tell them… I mean Yuko has been trying to help me win you over for the past year. Ever since she read what I wrote in that journal…” Mayu said blushing and looking the other way.

“Oh really, that long ago? I have been asking Takamina for relationship advice while helping her with her feelings for Yuko.” I said with a laugh and a huge smile.

“Wow, I guess we just have to try and get Takamina and Yuko together now. I love you, Yukirin.” Mayu said looking at me with love in her eyes as I gazed back with the same look in my eyes.

“I love you too, Mayuyu,” I said nuzzling up against her cheek loving that I had the woman I loved at my side.

When we made it back to the café/bar Yuko, Sayanee, Maachun, and Takamina were all sitting there waiting to greet us. We told them everything that happened during our trip and they were so proud that Mayu and I were going out and that I protected her from those guys.

‘Although I lost my family and a lot of friends, I still found good friends who are like a new family to me and I found the love of my life. I wish my family could have met Mayu because I’m sure they would love her. But overall my life is wonderful and all because I had hope and decided to create my coffee shop that all that I got to meet my good friends Sayanee, Maachun, and Takamina; that I was able to meet Yuko after all these years; and that I was able to meet my love, Mayuyu.

And I wouldn’t have my life any other way!’


End file.
